My Ungrateful Twist

The Itch That Won't Go Away

This time of year always brings out the "I am Grateful for..." posts, and that's a good thing.  It's nice to check your Facebook posts and see people expressing their gratitude in a positive way... well, usually.  This year something happened to me and I can't seem to get it out of my head. I keep thinking about the LARGE list of things I am usually UNGRATEFUL for.  What is wrong with me?! 

I tend to think about things way deeper than I should (which I probably should be grateful for), and it often leads me to the issues that I need to work on in my life (which is another thing I should be grateful for), but there are times when I would love to just take the easy way. Why can't I just be happy with choosing one thing I was grateful for and sharing it? I'm such a freak!

My craziness has led me to keeping a list of things I was ungrateful for instead of listing the things I have been grateful for each day.  Sadly, it's a long list. There is a bright side to this though. In my 'gotta think things into the ground' way, I have realized that it has forced me to look at my life and see the positive out of the negative. It challenges me to see God through the opposition in my life. It also has led me to start blogging again in the hopes that I am not alone in my craziness.  Surely there are others out there that get me! (Do I sound too desperate?)

I want to share one thing from my Ungrateful List and see where it goes. 

I am ungrateful for the difficult people in my life. Maybe you have some in your life too.  You know the type. These are the people that can get you so angry and frustrated that you have a hard time loving them. These are the people that you find yourself talking to yourself about out loud. They have a way of getting under your skin and becoming the itch that won't go away no matter how hard you scratch! So annoying!!

Where did this take me?  It took me to the law of opposition. How could I know joy if I didn't know sadness or anger or frustration?  Opposition is a teaching tool and an important part of the Plan of Salvation. It's there to remind me to see things with an eternal perspective.  And that's when I had my epiphany: Frustration is God's way of letting me know that I need to change my perspective!

I have to make a choice: do I let these people frustrate and anger me or, do I choose to look for the eternal lessons they are teaching me and be grateful that the Lord loves me enough to put them in my life. There it is, my ungrateful twist! 

I'm feeling a little better about the situation, less itchy.  It's interesting to me how the Lord has a way of tempering my anger and frustration when I let Him. I love Him for that!